Poof! You're in love
by AnnieXMuller
Summary: Tumblr Anon Prompt which asked for a post-ep for Poof! You're dead involving Castle, Beckett, and the comfort-food truck.


**Poof! You're in love.**

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Castle had insisted on carrying the flowers through the lobby and out into the street, pausing to pretend to sniff them as they descended the steps, much to Beckett's chagrin. She didn't say anything, merely rolled her eyes and gestured with a tilt of her head for him to hurry up. His mood was still low, his heart still aching from ending a relationship just ten minutes earlier. Tonight, she would allow him the little things that perked him up: like sniffing a bunch of fake flowers as they made their way to the comfort-food truck.

Only once she had been handed the two steaming containers of greasy food did Beckett hold her palm out and raise her eyebrows at him, gesturing for him to pass her the bouquet. "Flowers or mac and cheese, Castle. Your call."

From his hesitation she could tell he almost wanted the flowers more, but he quickly relinquished them, passing them on to her as though he were presenting her with them. She took them, sighing in faux annoyance at his display.

Beckett stuffed the flowers into her pocket, the corner of her lips twitching up at herself as she did so. Flowers shoved in her pocket, mac and cheese in her hand, strolling down the streets of NY after dark with her... Castle. Her partner, her friend, her whatever the hell he was.

"So, _Doctor_ Motorcycle Boy is on shift?"

Beckett nodded. He was fishing for information, and she wasn't prepared to give much more just yet. "Can we not, Castle?" She asked, meeting his eyes. "We can talk about anything else, just not _that_."

Castle contemplated her words, his fork jabbing at the mac and cheese, but not quite skewering it. "_Anything_ else?"

Damn. "Within reason."

"Tell me about your grandfather then."

They paused to cross the street, and she used that moment to consider his request. "Why? So Nikki Heat can have a magician in the family?"

He shook his head. "Not for Nikki," he replied.

"Because I told you that you remind me of him?"

He smiled faintly, but it gave him away.

"I thought as much," she told him as they walked. "He was my paternal grandfather; he taught me all about smoke and mirrors, and the art of misdirection." She smiled at her words, well aware she wasn't just talking about magic. "Intelligent and quick-witted, and the best story-teller I knew."

"Until me, of course."

Kate let out a small chuckle. "Oh, I don't know, Castle. He would have given you a run for your money." She turned and led him into a small well-lit, secure, park. She continued to speak as they walked the narrow, paved path. "Both my parents worked late; I spent many evenings with my grandparents as a child, and it was there I learned a little magic."

"I can picture little Kate Beckett, standing in a garden, top hat on a table beside her, rabbit held up high, ears clenched in her fist, for the world to see."

"I never did pull a rabbit out of a hat," she admitted. "What little skills I had at that age I made up for with a dazzling smile and pigtails."

"And I bet it was adorable."

"I used to put on quite the show."

They had wandered over to a park bench. The evening was brisk, but mild for a January, and the hot food was warming her - or maybe it was his company. She sat beside him, the distance between them minimal, and they settled on the hard bench.

Beckett inhaled deeply, letting out a small sigh. "He suffered a stroke when I was ten. It was bad. We lost him mere hours later, and I remember it all so clearly. The hospital, the flowers." She ran a hand over the silk flowers protruding from her pocket as she mentioned it. "My mom fighting back tears, my dad standing tall and proud and barely holding it together. Later that night, back home, I heard my mom cry for the first time. I had crept down the hall, needing a glass of water, and as I passed their bedroom I heard her tears. It was… heartbreaking."

Her voice had faltered at the memory. Castle dropped a hand lightly to her knee, squeezing gently. He didn't linger, pulling his hand back to secure his food on his lap. She smiled warmly at his gesture.

"I still, on occasion, wander into magic shops, look around, and remember everything he taught me."

His knee brushed hers, and she wrestled silently with whether to pull back, or allow the contact. When he didn't make any snide comments, or increase the pressure, she didn't move away. She allowed their knees to touch, the warmth, the contact, comforting.

"And that's all you're getting tonight," she said.

He looked at her sharply then. "I'm sorry?"

"About my grandfather," she explained.

"Of course."

They were silent then, staring out at the night around them, lost in their own thoughts. She edged just a little closer to him, seeking warmth, her coat not quite enough to keep the chill at bay.

"You cold?"

"A little," she admitted.

"Wanna leave?"

Beckett shook her head. "It's cold, but it's peaceful out here."

Castle tilted his head slightly at her words.

All around them were the sounds of the city: car horns, sirens, people chatting as they walking by, dogs barking. Too much noise. Castle whipped his head around as a distant sound, a gunshot, echoed through the night, but she didn't even flinch. When you're a detective, peaceful takes on a different meaning.

"How about you, Castle? You need to get home?"

"And face my mother's questions about Gina?" He asked. "No, can't say I'm in any hurry."

Kate nodded silently. "I'm sorry, Castle."

He blinked a couple of times, turned to her. "You heard?"

"I…" She bit her lip and shrugged apologetically. "I overheard your phone call."

"Ah, sorry about that," he replied. "Gina and I…. Well, I loathe to say tonight was inevitable but…"

"You have to try though, right?" Beckett finished for him.

"Is that what you're doing?"

Beckett blanched. "Excuse me?" She moved her knee away from his but turned a little more towards him, her eyebrows raised at the audacity of question.

"Isn't it what we all do?" He said quickly. "Try, and hope it doesn't all just go down in flames around us?"

"You say that like relationships are hard work."

"Can't say I've ever found them easy."

"Even the best fight. My parents, they had the strongest relationship I've ever seen, but even they argued at times. I think… I think something is wrong if you don't occasionally clash."

"Ah, _occasionally_ clash. I get it now. I see where I went wrong."

"Castle," she said gently. "You can't blame yourself."

He threw his empty mac and cheese meal into the trash beside him, absorbing her words. He took her food container from her as she passed it, and deposited that in the trash as well.

With a smile, she retrieved the flowers from her pocket, and passed them to him. "I think you need these tonight," she told him as he accepted them.

He smiled faintly at the colorful bouquet in his hands. "I need a drink." The _with you_ went unspoken, but they both heard it. He glanced up at her. "I know a place, nearby."

Kate gave him a sad, tight-lipped smile. "Go home, Castle. Answer Martha's questions and get it out of the way."

"A drink sounds more appealing."

"But it won't solve anything." Her face darkened as she said the words, her meaning clear. Her father, her relationship with Castle. Josh. No, alcohol solved nothing.

"Yeah." He ran a hand through his hair. He was tired, frustrated, hurt.

Beckett hesitated for a moment, before inching just a little closer. She wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing his body to hers in a comforting hug. She felt his body tense momentarily, before he gave in to the contact and placed his own arms limply around her. "I'm sorry, Castle," she murmured. Her chin rested on his shoulder, her cheek pressed to his. She pulled back, smiled at him. When he half-heartedly attempted a smile in return she brought her hand up to cup his cheek, and held his eyes. "Go be with your family."

"I already am."

Her breath hitched, and she pulled back abruptly, her hand dropping from his skin like it had burned her.

He reached for her hands and clasped them in his, keeping her on the bench before she could bolt from him. "Thank you, Kate. For the food, for the company, for the honesty." He paused, gave her a lop-sided smile. "For the flowers."

She nodded, swallowing down the lump forming in her throat. "Anytime, Castle." Standing, she allowed a hand to stay in his and she helped him up off the bench.

He loosened his grip, giving her the freedom to pull her hand from his if she needed to. She didn't. They walked side-by-side to where he had parked his car, silent, contemplative. She accepted his offer to drive her home, and only once they were beside the car did she gently break the contact.

"I know I would have liked your grandfather," Castle told her, as he navigated the streets. "Thank you for telling me about him."

Kate smiled out the passenger side window, her eyes on the buildings and the lights of the city as they all passed in a blur. "He would have liked you too."

Silence settled over them again, little left to be said, and he soon eased the car into a space outside her building. She turned to face him, smiling.

"Thank you."

Castle reached for her hand, wrapping his fingers around the tips of hers. He lifted her hand, and grazed her knuckles with his lips. He squeezed once, just briefly, gently, before letting her go. "Always," he replied easily.

With a nod, Beckett opened the door and stepped onto the sidewalk. She closed the car door, turned and gave him a small smile before heading into her building.

Josh was great. She liked Josh. So, why did her heart swell, why did she feel warm and safe, when Castle reached for her, touched her hand, pressed his lips to her skin?

No. She wasn't ready to face the answer to that just yet.

Smoke and mirrors and misdirection.

She could use those for just a little longer.

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**AN: My second Anon Tumblr prompt was to write a post _Poof! You're dead_ that involved the comfort-food truck. :-) **

**The next fic will be fluffy I SWEAR!**


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